Ancora Psychiatric Hospital reports signs of progress

Crowding down, therapy hours up

May 21, 2008

Written by

ALAN GUENTHER

MANAHAWKIN BUREAU

WINSLOW — After the deaths of more than half a dozen patients in 20 months, after dozens of staffers were fired for beating up mentally ill patients, after a woman overdosed on heroin while living in the facility, administrators will join Gov. Corzine today to celebrate some good news about positive changes at Ancora Psychiatric Hospital.

"We're not ready to declare victory yet," said Greg Roberts, the acting chief executive officer of the hospital. But in an interview on Tuesday, Roberts and Assistant Human Services Commissioner Kevin Martone pointed to a series of positive changes made since the Asbury Park Press began examining hospital conditions on Jan. 6:

• Overcrowding at the hospital has eased. The patient population has dropped from 758 on Jan. 6 to 673 on May 19 — an 11.2 percent decrease.

• To cut down on patient escapes, the security fence around the hospital has been made 4 feet higher, meaning the fences are now 10 feet tall.

• On Jan. 6, patients received as little as one hour of therapy per week. Today, they receive at least 10 hours a week, Roberts said.

The goal is to get patients up to 20 hours of therapy per week, he said.

State Human Services Commissioner Jennifer Velez will issue an administrative directive today, recognizing the changes but making demands that additional improvements be made.

Among the trouble spots are assaults, especially those causing "moderate" injuries that can involve biting or black eyes, though Martone said the numbers don't tell the whole story.

From January to May 15, 2007, there were 456 assaults, most often between patients, or between patients and staffers. During the same time period this year, there were 636 assaults, an increase of 39 percent. Moderate injuries increased from four to 17 for the first five months.

But those numbers are deceiving, Martone said. The hospital has revamped its method of collecting data and now records every possible incident, he says.

Deputy Public Advocate Ted Novak, who has represented patients at the hospital for more than 31 years, said he has noticed that "things are a bit quieter, morale is a bit higher . . . and you don't see patients lying on the floor at this point . . . It's more peaceful."

But the biggest problem, Novak said, is that more than 300 people who have been ordered released by the courts are still stuck inside the hospital, Novak said.

"A lot of people are frustrated," said Novak. "Sometimes their frustration is exhibited by people banging on the walls. You can imagine what it would be like to be stuck at Ancora for a year."

Public Advocate Ronald K. Chen wants the state to more aggressively pursue alternative housing for mentally ill patients. There are about 75 residential care facilities in the state. Chen said he wants more patients placed in these homes, which typically house between 20 and 40 people.

But that may be a bad idea, says Phil Lubitz, spokesman for the New Jersey chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

A NAMI survey in March 2000 showed that people with mental illness overwhelmingly preferred living in an apartment versus being housed in a boarding home or a residential care facility.

Martone said the state will examine what's right for patients on a case-by-case basis.